Untitled  Hector and Andromache
by FlutieCutie
Summary: "But sometimes one must do what is best for those he cares most about, even if it means sacrificing much." Andromache no longer had to wonder at what had happened to her Hector.


_**Disclaimer: I do not own the movie Troy, or the Iliad. I do use a line of dialogue which is a direct quote from the Iliad. Points to anyone who spots it.**_

"Hector...please, stay. If not for me, then for your son. If Achilles calls on you tomorrow, don't go."

The prince sat down on their bed and looked up at his wife as she stood in front of him, unshed tears shining in her eyes. It hurt him that she felt this way.

"Andromache, you think I would not stay for you?" he asked, "That I do not want to?"

The future queen of Troy wiped her eyes. "Well, you are preparing to battle with a man fueled by rage and hatred. He is like a rabid lion, yet you still go. What else can I think but that you are choosing certain doom over me? I love you, Hector. I cannot watch you die!"

Hector stood and gently took her face in his hands. The pair stared at each other in silence as he dried her cheeks with his thumbs. As he placed a kiss on her forehead, he closed his eyes and held her close.

"My love," he whispered into her hair, "You are my life. Our son is my life. The man I fight tomorrow desires to take my life, which includes you. I cannot let that happen, Andromache; I _will_ not. Words cannot express how I love you and I would give my very soul to protect you.

"Do I want to fight this man tomorrow? Do I want to leave you and Astyanax? Most certainly not! But sometimes one must do what is best for those he cares most about, even if it means sacrificing much. Ah, may the earth lie deep on my dead body before I hear the screams you utter as they drag you off."

By the time he was finished, he and Andromache clung to each other as if the entire world would shatter to pieces if they let go. Andromache cried as Hector did his best to comfort her. Astyanax, who laid in his bassinet mere feet away, seemed to sense the heaviness of the atmosphere of the room and he stayed quiet for his parents' sake.

The couple slowly laid down on their bed facing each other. Andromache brought her hand to her husband's face and caressed his cheek, staring deep into his eyes.

Whispering, as to not break the fragile silence surrounding them, Andromache spoke. "Do not let this be the last time I look upon you, my love," she said, "Come back to me."

Hector took her hand in his own larger one. "I promise to do all in my power to make it so," he replied, "And even if I cannot, I will always be with you."

They fell asleep in each other's arms, praying and hoping that it would not be the last night they shared together. Tonight, time was still theirs.

The sun was only just beginning to rise when Hector awoke. He took a few minutes to watch his wife as she slept. He never did understand why people made such a fuss over Helen's beauty, when he had the most beautiful woman in the world right beside him. When he couldn't stall any longer, he moved carefully out of the bed as not to disturb Andromache.

He lingered at his son's bassinet for a moment before making his way across the room to his armor. He had put it on many times throughout his lifetime but he had never taken the time to truly appreciate it. Hector preferred peace, but when he went to war he fought to uphold his family and his country. But this armor had protected him for most of his adult life. Priam had given it to him shortly after he married Andromache. _"A new chapter in your life begins, my son," _the king had said, _"The protector of so much, himself needs a bit of protection. The best Troy can offer."_

Hector dressed almost ceremoniously in his uniform before gathering his weapons. With one last glimpse at his wife and son, he left. He didn't want to say goodbye to Andromache. Goodbye meant forever, and he did not want to have to be without her in forever.

As he had been expecting since the previous day, Achilles showed up in front of the city and was yelling for him to fight. Hector spoke to his father, his brother, and his top generals before descending the stairs to the wall. There, he found Andromache and Astyanax making their way up to join the rest of the royal family.

"You remember what I told you?" Hector had to make sure she would be safe should he not return.

"You don't have to go," she whispered desperately, "You don't."

Achilles' incessant bellowing was not making the situation any easier and Hector tried to ignore him, if only for the moment. He needed to focus. "You remember what I told you?" he spoke firmly.

Andromache squeezed her eyes shut trying to hold back tears as she nodded. Hector sighed in both relief and dread before kissing his son and embracing his family. Astyanax let out a cry of discomfort at being sandwiched between his parents. Before they parted, Hector whispered in his wife's ear. "I love you."

He walked away quickly so to keep his resolve. Andromache held her son tighter and made her way up to the battlements.

The last person Hector saw before he left his beloved city was Helen. She stood alone in the square and looked to him as if to apologize for bringing all of this on him and his countrymen. He nodded slightly to her, donned his helmet, and turned, walking out of the front gate nobly. Hector, crown prince of Troy, would not go down without a fight.

Andromache sat deathly still on her bed, her back to the door. She had given Astyanax to one of her handmaidens; she needed to be alone right now.

She had not been able to bring herself to watch her husband fight the monster who had taken her brothers from her. Not long after the battle had started, she had excused herself and run back to her chambers. Now all she could do was sit and wait. Sit, wait, pray, and hope that the next person to walk through that door would not be there to tell her that her beloved had fallen.

It seemed like hours, to Andromache, that she had been waiting by herself in the deafening silence of her bedroom, when suddenly the door opened. She did not turn around to see who it was for fear that whoever that person was, they would be bringing news she could not bear.

Slow footsteps echoed across the stone room and made their way closer to her and she looked down at the floor. The man, she could tell by his feet, stopped in front of her and knelt down. She gradually forced herself to look up at his face. As soon as she saw who he was, she closed her eyes, tears falling freely from them. Andromache no longer had to wonder at what had happened to her Hector.

_**End**_

_A/N: Was the man Hector returning from his battle with Achilles? Or was he Paris or someone else come to tell her Hector fell? I'll leave that to you to decide. I know which choice I pick. Have a pleasant day, people. _

_Yours, Lizzie_


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